Betwixt the Worlds
by Trevor X
Summary: GSCT cross With the ending of the age, power has been awakened; now it calls to a being on another world to come to it's aid...
1. Prologue

Deep in the bowels of earth, within a natural cavern lay the figure of a man. He lay unmoving, save for an occasional twitching of the fingers on his left hand. If he could be seen, it is likely that he might have been pronounced dead.

But he was very much alive, only not paying attention at present to the gloomy atmosphere that currently housed his mortal form. His mind was wandering on far paths, seeking out hidden power...

He shuddered in delight as he touched a pulse of power, the faint echoes from the faraway land mimicced by the slight shudders that ran through his body unseen, unfelt. Touching the pulse again, he began to discern it's type and shape, gaining a clearer picture of the being in his own mind. _Yes! This one will do it!_

Another faint spot of power on the same plane pulled his attention, but it was too shrouded by the distance to maintain any strict observation for more than a few seconds. After being frustrated by the elusive thread, the observer turned to new paths. _Ah yes, yet another grouping of signatures. More power to consume, to put to my use... It is time._

_It is time._

And with that thought, he began to call out, and pull with the great power that welled up within him. In the space surrounding, planets and worlds began to reshape themselves to the call of his will...


	2. Chapter 1

It started off a day like any other...

The town of Vale had been decimated with the rising of the Golden Sun, the reawakening of the power of Alchemy. Though the villagers had hidden away, all their worldy goods had been taken from them yet a second time. A depressing blow, or it would have been had they not shrugged it off and optimistically decided to rebuild the town slightly away from it's former resting place. The cleared area of the mountainside was a veritable hive of activity, with adepts of varying degrees of proficiency working to make habitations for each of the families now stranded under the elements.

One of the first buildings to be erected was a rather large, single room 'shelter' (for lack of a better term). It's purpose was to provide shelter from the rainfalls that tended to frequent the area on occasion. All the inhabitants of Vale could fit inside it's walls; though no hotel, they would at least remain dry. Once everyone had their own house again, it could be used as the town meeting hall...

Several smaller structures were appearing around the central building under the watchful gaze of the town elder. The seemingly feeble old man leaned upon his staff as he wandered slowly in circles, speaking quietly to most, shouting at a few. His wife followed him, trying to get him to sit still and let others do the work.

Nearby, working on one of the new houses, two lads labored to build the walls. Stripped to the waist, sweat poured down their bodies as they lifted the wooden planks and fastened them to the sides of the house. The taller boy swiped at his eyes for a second, succeeding only at mixing a little dirt in with the perspiration, before running a hand through flame colored hair.

"Hey Isaac! Doesn't this remind you of the times before our adventures?"

The brown haired swordsman looked up and grinned suddenly. "Yeah, it does. Although I would admit that it was easier to replace the thatch when you were on the ground."

Garret groaned a little at the prod, remembering his own clumsiness, which still plagued him at times. "I guess I deserved that... not that I _tried_ to ruin the roof, mind you!" He shifted his weight as though to lean against the wall and then warily stepped away to sit on the grass. "Jenna was in a hurry that day."

Isaac nodded and looked about to reply when another voice came from behind his ear. "Jenna was what?" Isaac jumped and turned to find Jenna standing behind him, her hands on her hips, smirking. Garret opened his mouth and shut it abruptly, blushing furiously. "We were, um, just remembering the events of a few months ago."

The fire adept shook her head at them, raised eyebrows in mock disbelief. "You rememiniscing? Unthinkable!" Stepping forward, she laid her hand on Isaac's shoulder, smirking as he shifted uncomfortably at the close contact. "Anyways, since you guys are finished with this job, maybe you'd like to come over to the shade and get your lunch?" Another squeeze, this time her hand moving down to the boy's upper arm.

Garret watched the little display between his friends with a frown. "Yeah, sure. Let's go Isaac." _She'll never look at me like that, even though I like her a lot. She has her eye on Isaac. Why him? Why not me?_ Jealousy boiled through his veins as he gathered his shirt and strode off towards the central building; jealousy that he barely managed to keep contained. After all, it wasn't Isaac's fault that Jenna was taken with him...

A hand clapped on his shoulder, and he turned his head to see the Isaac looking at him with a worried frown. "What's eating you Garret?"

The fire adept shrugged his shoulders and then visibly deflated. "Jenna."

"Oh..." That one word brought realization and a dead silence to the swordsman as he let his arm fall back to his side. "Garret... you do realize that there is nothing going on between us, right? For the present, all of us are 'just friends', and I don't want that to change until everybody is back on their feet." He gestured to the Valeans scattered over the hillside. "It's not time for anything like that."

"Yeah, I guess you're right." The fiery haired youth stopped for a moment to pull his shirt on. "Anyways, it's time to eat, so..." He let his words trail off into a sly grin. "Let's go!"

Jenna watched as Isaac hurried off after a miffed looking Garret and sighed inwardly. She realized at the end of their quest that the fiery-haired warrior wanted a more personal relationship with her, but having just received her parents and brother back from the dead, she was too busy to really think about such things. Now, with some thought behind it, a relationship of that sort really didn't appeal to her.

Garret was a great guy and all, but he did tend to be rather blunt and hasty - a manner that some would have ascribed to Jenna as well. It just wouldn't work out between them. Isaac however... Now that _was_ a topic!

Isaac was dependable, level-headed, and well... attractive. Honest almost to a fault and fiercely loyal to his friends, all of which bode well to any potential partners that he may aquire in time. Although, come to think of it... Her thoughts trailed off as her brother stepped in front of her and waved a hand in her face. "Hello to Jenna! Wake up!"

"Felix! I _am_ awake!" At his disbelieving snort, Jenna crossed her arms and fixed him with a glare. "I was just thinking."

An eyebrow went up as her brother surveyed her for a long moment. "I can guess what it was already." A quick wave of his hand dispelled any protest that she tried to make, and he shook his head at her, allowing a slight smile. "You are my sister, after all. But that is beside the point. I've decided to take a trip to Contigo."

Jenna blinked at that. "What?"

"I'm going to Contigo. Ivan and Sheba are there, and we haven't seen them for a while, so I wondered if you wanted to come along? It would be for a couple of weeks at least." Felix looked slightly amused at the expression that came over his sister's face. "Your mouth is hanging open sis."

Rolling her eyes, Jenna turned away in feigned disgust. "Why on Weyard would you want me to come _with _you? You know that you're just going away to see Sheba..." Her brother blushed crimson at the revelation and winced, although no one was within range of the conversation at present. _"Not so loud, please!"_

The girl laughed at that and turned back to him with a dangerous sparkle in her eyes. "No, I won't come. But you could find another travelling companion; someone like, say, Garret. I mean," and here her voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper, "he really needs to get himself a girl, and maybe one of the maidens down there will whisk him away; say like Sheba is doing to you."

"Which would save you the trouble of telling him no." her brother put in wryly as he closed his eyes. Sighing and turning to survey the breadth of Vale, Felix pondered the idea. It did have some merit, and he didn't want to be alone with his thoughts too much right now anyways. He'd had rather too much of that in the previous year's sojourn. _Besides,_ he reminded himself, _it's time to start rebuilding some of the old bridges in my life._

"Thanks Jenna, I just may do that."

With that, he walked off towards the crowd gathered on the grass under the shade trees. Leaving a blinking Jenna in his wake.

A normal morning, a normal day... at least, that's how it usually went. But today was not ordinary, and definitely not the norm. As dawn broke upon the universe, it found the slightly damp form of a lad upon the beaches of Guardia. Tangled red-gold bangs fell haphazardly over the kerchief worn to keep the hair from falling into his eyes, Chrono felt particularly solemn and upset this morning.

Perhaps it was the wind, the little breezes that sprang up to tease the sand and water before dashing out of sight. Or maybe the damp chill that seemed to cling to everything within sight, bringing discomforting moisture and cold.

_It could have been the dream._ Chrono mused idly, while watching the sunrise turn the waters of the sea a light crimson. A dream so real, and yet it came back to him only in ghostly fragments that danced on the edge of his awareness. Scenes returning from the nightmare that had been Lavos, the falling fire that had tried to destroy a world. Of the battles that had taken place to defeat the creature once and for all. And a lurking menace, as though perhaps the deed had not been entirely done...

_Strange though,_ his eyes closed in thought, listening to the lapping of the water on the shore, Chrono failed to pick up the whispers of sand behind him. _I could have sworn that I felt another presence reaching out to me while I was fighting. Was it good? Evil? Does it exist outside my dreams?_

A sigh broke him out of his contemplation. Lucca gave her friend a sideways glance as she sat down on the sand next to him. "Couldn't sleep either, huh?"

Chrono shook his head as he shifted position to stare at her. "Nope." He wondered at the weary look that passed over her face at his response.

"Dreaming? Nightmares?"

The auburn haired swordsman nodded absently. "About that last battle with Lavos. And yet, something was wrong. It was as though something outside was trying to get into my head..." His voice trailed off into a companionable silence, broken only by the crashing of the waves on the beach.

A sudden stillness shocked the pair out of their silent contemplations. The noise of the waves was gone, replaced after a moment by a trembling of the earth beneath. The sand shifted on the beach, knocking Chrono back to the ground as he tried to stand up. Fifteen minutes later the ground stopped shaking, and the world resumed it's normal routine... with a small exception. Lucca gasped and pointed oceanward. Chrono stared for a moment, then grabbed his friend's arm and hastened off of the beach. The tidal wave hit land with a resounding roar.

Chrono gasped for air as the water swirled around him, still struggling against the ocean. He lost his footing and his hold on Lucca as the rebounding of the wave knocked him off his feet. Light became a distant memory as he was swept out to sea under the surface of the water.

"Lucca...Marle...Mom!"

Light (and memory) returned to slowly. The light hurt his eyes as he opened them, then squinted at the brightness. His head throbbed, and sitting up made him dizzy - not to mention nauseated. Drawing a deep breath started him coughing, and he lay back down for just a moment.

_How did I get here? Last I remember was getting sucked under by that wave... Gods! I hope that Lucca got away. And the village...!_ Wearily Chrono opened his eyes again and looked around. Nothing appeared familiar. He groaned at his predicament. "Just my luck. Get sucked under the sea and pop up in provinces unknown. Well, I won't get back by staying here." With a sigh, the half-drowned swordsman staggered to his feet and started away from the beach.

Unseen eyes watched from the water. _So you'll survive... Good luck, then._


	3. Chapter 2

It awakened from the darkness.

There! A call to awaken and serve! To move across the planes of time and space, to grow in power and dominate lesser beings. A dream lost for many years, lying dormant in the soil of the little planet housing the few city states that decryed themselves as great. A sparsely populated place, that much was true; and with little hope to ever leaving it. The First had come here, yes, but then it had also been destroyed, together with olders. _They _did not care for leaving.

But it could smell it in the faint line of power that called it to awaken. Another world, ripe with thousands, waiting to be invaded by a greater intelligence. Begging to be subjegated to its power, directed for its benefit. The time at last had come... and with that thought, the planet shifted, shaking the creature fully awake from it's slumbers.

Yes indeed, the time had come...

Garrett stirred lazily as the breeze wafted along the upper deck. Beside him, Felix shifted his feet as he stared out across the railing. The voyage had been pleasantly uneventful, lacking even the customary attacks by the occasional sea creature. The continent was due to come into view sometime before sundown, and yet for some reason that he did not fully comprehend, the earth adept was nervous. Garret smiled to himself, thinking of the purpose for the visit.

Felix was of course impatient and slightly nervous to meet the young wind adept again, but at present his mind was fidgetting over a concern that was nagging at the edges of his consciousness: the stillness of the voyage. Usually there was at least one or two pseudo-combats per journey with the creatures that inhabit the waters betwixt each of the continents, but according to the captain, not even a single sighting on this trip. The superstitious members of the crew murmured low and long about bad omens and shipwrecks, while the more open minded enjoyed the reprieve from danger.

At first, Felix had been grateful for the lack of monsters to engage on the journey. He'd done enough of that sort of thing while on his quest to light the four elemental lighthouses. Peace was what he'd been hoping for ever since then. But as the voyage drew near to it's close, the venus adept began to ponder the possible meaning behind the phenomena.

"Land ho!"

A shout from atop the mast brought him out of his reverie with a start. Beside him, Garret jumped to his feet and gripped the railing to steady himself against the movement of the ship. "Yes! Finally we get there!" Red hair blowing back and forth in the wind, the fire adept looked almost like a living torch. He grinned and winked as he looked back at Felix.

"Think they know we're coming?"

The earth adept pondered the question for a few moments before tendering an answer. "They know." Garret frowned as he puzzled it out. "Oh yeah, I forgot, they have Master Hamma with them. She seems to know a lot of stuff before it happens."

"Yeah, that's the way it is with Jupiter adepts. Something about the wind allows them to see things beyond the present." Felix paused to lean again on the rail and gaze longingly at the dark strip on the horizon. "Sheba is like that. She, well, she makes me really want to go out and do good. To win her favor, just to make her smile. It's almost as if I can _see_ her with me in the future, and I hope..." the adept stopped fumbling his words together as they didn't make any sense, even to himself. The ideas were there, but the mind refused to allow the tongue to do them justice.

Garret nodded sympathetically. _*He understands.*_ Felix sighed with relief, a feeling that changed to terror in the moments following.

From behind them, someone shouted an alarm.

The captain turned to look and swore aloud. "All hands! Batten the hatches and prepare for rough weather!" The two adepts blinked at one another in confusion, before turning to ask what the problem was. There was nary a cloud in the sky...

The question went unasked as they stared in amazement and rising fear at the wall of water rushing towards them.

The scene at the castle was pure pandemonium. Marle had been awake for some hours, staring at the patch of sky visible from her balcony, but the growing noise in the courtyard and castle hallways had brought her out of her contemplations. Frowning, she hurried to the throne room, certain that explanations could be had there.

As she stepped through the private side door, the princess could see her father, the King Guardia, listening with grave attention to the three persons standing in front of the throne. Moving forward, she recognized them as some of the villagers she had seen during the past festival. All three were drenched with the ocean's spray, and seemed to have had a rough fight with the elements, if their clothes were any indication.

"...village is gone. Now we're just trying to pull out survivors. Is there anything you can do, your majesty? Boats? Anything at all?"

King Guardia looked over at his daughter, standing still by the door and nodded sympathetically. Turning back to his subjects, he stood and gestured to the soldier by the door. "Captain, tell the guard to gather every man available for the rescue effort. See to it that any boats we may have are sent out to comb the ocean for survivors. Also, make sure that field shelters are provided for temporary housing - and food!"

The soldier saluted his liege and turned quickly on his heels to rush out of the room. The villagers looked extremely grateful and bowed their heads before trudging out to resume their work. The king looked back to where his daughter had been but a moment before; she was gone.

"Ah, Nadia..." the old king sighed to himself, "For your sake, let it not be a time of grief. Let your loved one survive."

Lucca held on to the pole with a deathgrip. The water that swirled around her waist still threatened to take her out with the tide, but up to the present, the flag pole that she had managed to cling to still held firm. So she closed her eyes and held tightly to the only thing that gave her a sense of safety. No Lucca the Great here, just Lucca the frightened teenager, who'd just seen her best friend get washed out to sea.

Well, seeing wasn't exactly the most technically correct word to use in the circumstance - she'd been submerged when Chrono's hand had been ripped away from her's and by the time she broke the surface and found something to keep her steady, there hadn't been a soul in sight.

She shuddered with cold and cautiously peeked her eyes open to peer at the surrounding area. Debris from houses and sheds littered the water around her. Some buildings farther off the shore still stood, and she could make out lights in the windows, so someone should have escaped... _Hope they come for me soon; I'm not sure how long I can stay here like this._

Her silent plea was answered by the sound of oars, and a large rowboat manned by four soldiers from Guardia Castle. They spotted the girl and pulled for her direction. "Hang in there! We've almost got to you!"

Lucca sighed with relief when the boat glided even with her position, and a pair of large hands pulled her into safety. A blanket was wrapped around her shoulders, and the soldiers took up searching the area again for survivors...

Later, Lucca huddled in front of a large bonfire, far back from the current waterline. Her clothes were dry by this time, and she stared morosely into the flames, absorbed in the total insanity of the 'natural disaster'. As far as she could recall, nothing like this had ever happened - excepting of course, the planetary implosion caused by Lavos in a future that would never happen.

A hand on her shoulder brought her back to the present, and she looked up into the worried eyes of Princess Nadia. "Lucca, are you...?"

The inventor nodded, bringing up her hand to adjust her glasses on her nose. "Just fine, but Chrono..." Her voice trailed off and a tear spilled over to run down her cheek. "Damn! Why now?"

Marle knelt down and embraced her friend, tears running unchecked on her own face. For some minutes the two sat commiserating their loss. Finally Lucca worked up the courage to continue on. "We were sitting on the beach watching the sun come up, since we couldn't sleep," Here Marle's eyes widened and she nodded in understanding. "when this wall of water rises up out of the blue and decides to swallow up our entire home. Chrono tried to get us back to safety, but something ripped us apart, and I haven't seen him since."

"So, he might be dead or," Marle hesitated over the word, "_alive_."

Lucca merely nodded. "Seeing that it's Chrono we're talking about here, I'd like to think that it's the latter, but we should be prepared just in case..."

Guardia's princess nodded mutely, unwilling to even acknowledge the possibility with a verbal assent. _Oh Chrono! Be safe, come back home!_

Meanwhile on an unknown shore...

The lone swordsman paused in his trek across the brush and rocks to look back across the sea. _Be strong, Marle; I'm coming back to you!_ His shoulders squared to the task ahead, and he plunged forward over the crest of the hill and was lost to sight.


	4. Chapter 3

Isaac wandered absently along the edge of the continent, wondering at the impulse that had led him on this journey. Impulsive decisions were Garet's specialty; Isaac himself preferred to think things through beforehand. But somehow here he was, travelling to the south, with no idea what he was doing. 

And why south of all places? Felix and Garet were gone to the west, visiting Contigo, while Jenna had taken off to visit Mia and her two young charges in Imil. Flint sat on his shoulder, chirruping away about some nonsense or other, blithely oblivious to the young swordsman's musings. 

All at once a terrible shaking began. 

Flint fell off Isaac's shoulder as the young swordsman took an involuntary seat on the ground. The djinni looked rightfully upset as he bounced along the turf. Fortunately for the travelers, the area that they were crossing was fairly clear of any falling objects (save djinn, of course). A tense few minutes passed before the earth stopped moving and all was silence once again. Hesitantly, the birdcalls of the region began to sound out. 

Isaac shook his head in amazement, shrugging his shoulders at Flint as the djinni bounced over to him, asking "what happened?" in a high pitched squeal. Crystal peered over Isaac's shoulder, where he'd been holding on for dear life and scolded the other djinni into silence. "SHUT UP FLINT!" 

Isaac blinked as Flint finally settled down. "Wow." 

Crystal fidgeted a bit as the swordsman regarded him with something resembling awe. "He was starting to get on my nerves." The djinni tried to explain his unorthodox behavior. Isaac merely shrugged in response before standing back up. "Wonder what just happened?" 

Scooping up Flint, he started southward once more. Perhaps there were answers to be had there. 

He hoped the others were okay; Vale should be fine, but Imil was on the ocean, and Felix and Garet were still at sea. Who knows what would happen in either place?   


Mia looked up from where she was preparing tea as an excited Justin tumbled into the room. Megan followed right on his heels, her face awestruck. "Mia, she can melt our snowballs faster than we can throw them!" 

Jenna stepped into the house just then, covered in sweat from the exertion. Shaking her head at the younger pair, Mia stepped over to her friend and gave her a once over. "You'll have to get into a dry set of clothes before you do anything else." The look that she threw back at the twins calmed them somewhat. "And that goes for you two as well." 

As they trooped to their room, Jenna smirked and hung up her coat and gloves. "Don't worry and don't appologise for them Mia - they just like to have fun once in a while. It doesn't bother me that I'm soaked all over; I had too much fun playing with fire." 

The mercury adept nodded in understanding and then shooed her friend into the other room to get changed. Returning, Jenna found the two young clanners setting the table in preperation for the evening meal. Wonderful smells came from the kitchen portion of the house. 

Mia swept in behind her charges carrying a tray with teacups and a kettle. Settling the tray on a side table near the window, she paused to pull forward her rocking chair. "Come over guys, the tea is ready!" 

The other three pulled up chairs and waited as Mia poured and handed out. Silence reigned for a few moments afterward while they drank their tea. Justin and Megan sat politely when they finished and looked out the window at the tree in the yard. Two snowbirds hopped about in its branches, chasing each other in circles. Suddenly they froze as the branches began to tremble. The teacups on the tray began to rattle, and the occupants of the house looked askance at one another. 

"Earthquake?" 

Mia gathered up the tray with the cups and hastened into the kitchen to deposit them in the sink. Hurrying outside, Justin pointed towards the ocean. "Look! Look!" 

"Oh my word…" Jenna stopped dead in her tracks and stared. A humungous wall of water was rapidly approaching the shore; and in turn, the village. The power of such an enormous surge was not going to be pretty, even when it came to the sturdy construction of Imil's huts. 

Mia grabbed the two younger mercury clanners by the arms and hauled them along. "Come on Jenna, we've got to get to the lighthouse!" The other girl wondered at the statement, but hastened after her friends. Perhaps the elemental lighthouse had a chance of surviving the deluge intact. 

The blue haired adept sped over the path, fear lending wings to her feet. The village, her village, was about to be destroyed. There seemed in her mind one small chance to protect everyone as she had sworn to do, but it would require perhaps more psynergy than she had yet used in any circumstance previous, save one: The attempted resurrection of Jenna's parents after they had been merged with Isaac's father to form the great Doom Dragon. 

The door to the lighthouse loomed ahead, and she couldn't see the water anymore. Mia pressed onward, trailed now by the other three as she headed for the Goddess statue. Honor the Goddess… 

Ply was cast on the statue… 

Outside the wave converged on the tower.   


Magus frowned. Something had gone amiss in the future, causing ripples in the fabric of time. He'd felt it back in the past where he'd been searching for his lost sister. Now he'd arrived at the end of time to confer with the watcher there. However, when the dark mage stepped inside from his gate, he'd noted the absence of the venerable figure. No one was leaning against the lamp post. 

Everything else seemed to be in it's proper place, the doorway and the two fenced off areas. Magus heaved a sigh as he remembered the second member of the End of Time. A short, annoying, fluff-ball who loved to style himself as the "God of War". Grumbling to himself, the mage strode over and opened the door. Spekkio was there, dancing around in the middle of the room in his fluff-ball form. 

"What happened here, runt?"   
  



	5. Chapter 4

  
Said fluffball was startled enough to snap out of his song and dance routine. Spekkio blinked at the blue haired mage. "Happened? What do you mean?" 

Sighing, irritated now, Magus grabbed the creature and shoved him outside his 'war room'. The little urchin stood blinking for a moment as he surveyed the room. The mage could almost see him cataloguing the contents in his head. _*Gate... check, lamp post... check, bucket... check...!*_

The light bulb almost burst from the energy that finally made it into the head. "Oh." Spekkio's voice was quiet. "Where is he?" 

The guru of time was missing from his usual vantage point by the lamp. No snoozing figure to greet the eyes of arriving visitors, no 'by the way' to frustrate them upon departure. The sole remaining occupant of the end of time was shocked. His mouth continued to work, but no words passed his lips. 

A highly irritated mage was watching his every move, and determined that the creature would be of no great help at present. He was interrupted by a flash of light and a startled croaking. A familiar visage presented itself as the newcomer picked himself up off of the floor. "Hail Magus. Long hath it been since together we drew swords - in any fashion it seemeth. But what praytell hath caused our transportation to this place?" 

"Indeed froggy, despite the fact that I drew my scythe instead of some other archaic weapon." The mage nodded towards the frog knight who now stood with his cape drawn around him. "As for your question, it would appear that something in the magic of our world has thrown you here. Perhaps even the murmurs in the fabric of the world that disturbed me. Something has gone down in time and space that has disrupted the natural flow of things. I transported myself here to consult with the keeper, but it seems that he has disappeared without trace." 

The knight frowned and placed a webbed hand to his chin, in deep thought. "Perhaps we should scry the time past and see what has caused this disturbance." 

Magus levitated as he stared solemnly at his former nemesis. "My idea precisely when I first arrived. The old one would have been able to see it for me, seeing that this is his area of expertise. I have the power to cast the spell, but will probably have trouble focusing it to the correct area." 

Frog smiled at the blue haired mage's admission. Drawing the Masamune, he closed his eyes and concentrated on the sword for a moment awakening the two beings who were bound to it. They stirred, and the knight handed his sword to the wizard. "Perhaps the Masamune will bring you the focus that you so desire. After all, t'was made by the guru of life, and mayhap this has effected life as well as time." 

Almost hesitantly the great wizard reached out to touch the weapon. The very item sworn by ancient legend to destroy him. When it didn't immediately incinerate him, Magus took it and held it out in front of himself as he began to chant softly under his breath. Frog watched as the sword began to glow, and the mage began to strain with the power of the spell. Finally he gasped and dropped the Masamune, falling forward onto his hands and knees. 

A hand dropped on his shoulder, and Frog's concerned face hovered beside his own. "What bothers you? Didst thy spell harm thee?" 

Before the winded mage could reply, a faint roaring sounded throughout the entire room. The trio by the lamp post riveted their attention to the origin of the sound. The Epoch appeared at the edge of the stairs, and two girls jumped out and rushed over to the lamp post. Lucca stopped abruptly at the sight in front of her. 

"Magus? Frog?!"   


He struggled on. His body was weary, so he supported himself with a makeshift staff. Stopping for a momentary rest, Chrono took the opportunity to gaze around himself and soak in the unfamiliar terrain. _*Whoa, its like another world! I wonder…*_ Sudden movement in the brush ahead broke his train of thought. 

Reaching deep into his mind, the youthful swordsman tentatively grasped for the magic - and was relieved to find it there. While he preferred to depend upon physical skills for the most part, he was not ignorant of the power of magic. And while feeling as exhausted as he was, magic might be the saving grace here. 

Although he was startled just a bit when the giant insect jumped out at him. 

Chrono managed to parry the attack, though he lost six inches from his staff in the process. His foe turned to strike again, pinchers open wide. Chrono dodged and retaliated by performing a quick technique with his improvised weapon. "Slash!" 

A burst of wind current traveled in a straight line and cut the legs off of one side of the insect monster. Breathing heavily, he held up his hand and called forth the unique element attuned to his nature. "Lightning!" A bolt of electricity shot forth and fried the now helpless creature. When it finished, all that remained was a smoking husk. 

Chrono sank to his knees after the attack. He'd been walking most of the day after nearly drowning, and now this battle. Still he managed to scramble back to his feet and turn towards the noise of someone crashing through the undergrowth. 

"Ouch! Watch out for that branch!" 

"Flint!" 

To stare in surprise as another youth burst into sight.   


Isaac burst through the low growth in the forest in a dead run. Up ahead were sounds of battle as someone took on one of the local breed of monsters. Thinking to lend a hand, he'd torn off towards the sounds; the two djinn currently clinging tightly to his shirt as he ran. Crystal, being a downright smart djinn had phased into his master and added his power to the mix while Flint continued to comment throughout the bumpy ride. Finally Crystal re-phased outside and yelled at him. 

"Oh, okay." 

The two djinn disappeared from sight and left two young men staring at one another. Isaac flicked his gaze over to the smoking corpse of the monster, and then back to the guy in front of him. Slowly he lowered his sword and a half grin made its way onto his face. "Hi, I'm Isaac. Welcome to Weygard." 

The spiky haired boy in front of him gave a nod. "I'm Chrono. Know how I can get home from here?"   
  



	6. Chapter 5

"Where do you come from?"

"A small hamlet near to Guardia Castle."

Isaac looked puzzled for a long moment before turning towards his new companion. "Where?"

"Guardia Castle; in Guardia. You've had to at least heard of it." As Isaac shook his head in denial, the spiky headed hero strove to establish a common geometry. "Porre? The dragon isles?"

"Sorry, I've never heard of any of them." Isaac frowned and looked at his djinn who were currently sitting calmly on the ground. "We're on Weygard - our world. Some major cities are Contigo, Loho, and Prox. Vale and Imil, are fairly well known villages, even if not major commerce centers. But you haven't heard of them before either." He finished his statement abruptly as he noticed Chrono shaking his head.

Wearily the boy joined him on the ground. With his legs crossed and his chin resting on his hands, he looked quite dejected. 

The djinni edged closer to the stranger, regarding him with a curious gaze. Quartz popped up on Isaac's shoulder and frowned at his brothers. Flint jumped back in surprise, and Crystal gave a start - though it was somewhat exaggerated by the tiny figure.

Chrono's head jerked upright. "What's the matter?"

The two djinn on the ground began to sputter and look quickly back and forth between the two boys. Isaac quickly became confused at their reaction. "What is the matter with you guys? It was just a simple question."

Flint continued to sputter nonsense for a half second longer before he shut up entirely. Crystal looked on worriedly as the silence extended on for longer than a minute. Finally the djinni perched atop Isaac's shoulder broke the silence.

"Why don't you two just go ahead and say it!" Exasperation was evident from the tone. "He's not from our world. Simple as that. Or he wasn't; there's something funny going on right now as I'm sure we all have felt." A nod from the two humans confirmed this conjecture on his part and the tiny figure jumped to the ground to confer more easily with his brothers.

Both fighters looked at each other and shrugged. This was going to take a while.

The wave converged on the tower and covered it. Imil lay next in its path, its fury undiminished.

Except that it had. To the outside observer, the wall of water seemed almost to stand still for a moment before continuing to converge on the Lighthouse. It could almost be believed that the stone of which the tower itself was constructed was absorbing the tidal wave.

Inside the Lighthouse, Mia rested her hands on the statue of the goddess as she strained in her greatest task to date. Behind her, her apprentices joined hands and strove to lend her their focus as well. Sweat rolled down their backs at the strain that they had undertaken. Jenna stood back and watched with awe at the power being generated in this one place.

With painstaking focus, Mia began to gently let flow a stream from the base of the Lighthouse even as it continued to absorb the water from the tsunami. The great wave was beginning to diminish in its size even now, though the trio was wavering from the strain.

"Jenna," Mia managed to gasp out, "add fire here - make steam."

The girl blinked twice before grasping the plot. Nodding in understanding, Jenna joined hands and let the fire begin to weave throughout the strands of water psynergy that abounded. Focusing in on one particular strand, she brought her own psynergy to bear and watched in mental satisfaction as it seemed to stream upward. With a start she found her body straining under the adverse conditions. Gritting her teeth she continued.

Outside, steam began to rise from the top of the Lighthouse, even as the wall of water dissipated into nothingness. Coming into contact with the cold upper atmosphere, clouds formed and snowflakes began to drift gently downwards.

Mia felt the water begin to recede on its own, and slowly what remained in the elemental stone. Pale, she sagged forward onto the goddess statue. Jenna caught the twins as they staggered forward, nearly collapsing after the ordeal. Being young, they recovered much faster than their elders, so Jenna was forced to support a fainting Mia outside of the tower, Justin and Megan leading the way. The twins stopped in awe at the first glimpse of the great fluffy snowflakes. Jenna merely arched an eyebrow in Mia's direction. The blue haired girl lightly shrugged, the most movement that she could manage.

"Well, granny did say it was going to snow today."

Glenn blinked as the landscape before him changed and he found himself inside a castle. The courtyard around him buzzed with activity as a steady stream of people entered and exited the grounds. Soldiers milled around with the common people, tending to the newcomers and leaving to continue on with the search for survivors.

Nervous fingers played with the hilt of the Einlanzer as Glenn tried to piece together just what had happened to him. Nearby a soldier stopped and called over to him. "Hey, are you going to stand there or come and help?"

Surprised, the dragoon blinked again before replying. "It would please me to be of assistance. Lead on good sir."

Following in the wake of the soldier, Glenn paused occasionally to listen in on the hurried conversations around him. From them and the evidence along the way, it soon became apparent that some kind of flood had happened to a seaside village. Efforts were being made to find people and get them into shelter. That being a part of the expedition that he now found himself a part of.

The dragoon sighed at the nagging thought at the back of his mind that he should know where he was. Maybe after things began to settle down he could ask someone for the location. Or perhaps it would come to him. He shrugged and continued on after his guide into the disaster zone.

Garet awoke with a start on the beach. His head pounded something fierce and he felt sore all over. Raising to himself to hands and knees, he suddenly choked and began to cough up water. When the episode finally ended, he opened his eyes and gazed around. Waves continued to lap up on the shore, bringing bits and pieces of the ship up to land.

For a long moment he stared wildly around him. There was no sign of any other survivors.


	7. Chapter 6

Power over the earth.

Power under the earth.

It awoke again, rising out of its slumber to find its goal that much closer. The worlds were joined, at least in a tentative physical sense. Slowly, ever so slowly the porcupine form of the lavoid crept upwards toward the surface. Time to free its servant and consume their knowledge and power.

Knowledge. Useful for prediction and self-preservation. The key to opening the minds of lesser beings and bending them to your own whim.

Power. Key to becoming impregnable. Destroy that which threatens your existence. Defend yourself against the onslaught of nature and things unnatural. _Yes,_ the lavoid mused as it crept along, _I shall surpass the First and my olders. I shall possess two worlds as one. I shall be unassailable. I shall be the ONLY._

And maybe it would find another means of transportation. The outer shell was extremely tough and impervious to most damage, but it certainly made for slow traveling. Not that the parasitic beings were ever in a hurry...

"Magus? Frog?!"

The female voices sounded vaguely familiar to the blue haired mage as he struggled to compose himself after his attempted scrying of the past. True to his prediction, he had been able to maintain the level of power required, but without the aid of the Masamune as a focus would have been able to see nothing of relevance to the situation.

As it was, all that he had been able to view was certain changes that had taken place in the life-forces of two differing planes of existence…

He attempted to sort it all out in his mind, the cluttered mass of images and impressions left over from the wild ride that was his spell. Never before had he attempted to harness that much power for so long a time. The gods alone knew when he would next attempt it. Even with his aborted summons of Lavos, the spell's force had been contained by the circle itself; he had only been needed to make the necessary noise to complete the summons…

Oh how they did babble on! Couldn't the owners of the voices just leave him to his ponderings? He could solve this riddle if they would just leave him be!

Magus shook his head and stared up at the concerned faces gathered around him. Frog had pulled back somewhat from the wizard, a gigantic frown upon the amphibian's features. Lucca and Marle wore worried expressions as well, though when they had popped up… _Gods! How embarrassing!_ He'd seen them arrive, just as the spell had finished.

Steeling his own face to conceal his consternation, the wizard slowly stood, retrieving the Masamune in the process and returning it to its wielder. "Very good deduction froggy. It was most helpful."

Frog blink-blinked as he returned the sword to its sheath. "T'would be safe to assume then that thou saw something to do with our present endeavor? Or hast thou simply recovered thine own austere composure and acerbic wit?" He remarked dryly.

"Really Frog! Just give him a minute; after all, he is the only competent spellcaster here at the present time!" Lucca was quick to chide him, even as she threw a worried gaze at the Zealian Prince. He _was_ the most powerful magic user there and if he was having problems with _his_ spells, what would that signify for the rest of the intrepid time travelers?

The mage looked slightly amused for a moment, but that could have just been her imagination.

Magus coughed slightly and turned once more to the occupants of the "End of Time". The two females remained worried, though Frog had managed to settle himself once again and Spekkio remained strangely silent. "However true that statement, I did manage to find the answer to at least one of our questions. The old man's current whereabouts."

This was immediately pounced on by all present. Cries of "Where is he?", "You saw him?", "What happened to him?" rang out simultaneously. He opened his mouth to reply…

…And was promptly cut off by the voice behind him. "That 'old man' was down visiting Melchior, the other 'old man'." The Guru of Time stepped back into the light under the lamp post.

Deep underground Alex lay in his tiny cavern, frustrated for the past few days in his attempts to exercise his power. Earlier he had been able to tap into it to pull a whole other world out of its dimensional orbit, now he could no longer manipulate anything. It was as though he were again confronted by the guardian after having received the Golden Light. He was being ridiculed for assuming that he now contained the power of a god.

_"You have **almost** limitless power and **almost** limitless life."_

And then the kicker: _"I infused Isaac with a small portion of the power of the Mar's Star."_

Due to the meddling of the guardian he was deprived of his ultimate goal: the power of Alchemy. He had almost all the power and therefore almost no limits. But he was still frustrated because he could use less psynergy now than when he'd first started learning as a pupil under Mia.

_So this is what it's like to be a powerless human._

Forcing himself to relax, Alex closed his eyes against the darkness. Another thought struck him as he lay there.

_Or perhaps what it is like to be a dead god…_


	8. Chapter 7

_A dead god. Is that all I am?_

_NO! I won't give in! I yet live! I won't be a dead anything! The power is MINE!!!_

Cold earth surrounded him, and there was no answer to his ravings.

---

It was snowing in Imil.

Now seeing that Imil was located far north on the continent, it would seem to bring no surprise to the average traveler. Of course, the average traveler kept to the central and southern portions of the continent, partly because of this reasoning. _"It's always snowing in Imil," _was a common phrase passed down from the earliest visitors to the region.

Right now the residents of the town huddled inside their houses and wondered when the weather would clear again. Save for one stubborn man whose only concession to the weather was to take his exercise by carrying in more wood for his stove, no one bothered to venture outside. The snow continued to pile up, and eventually even the diehard outdoorsman had to abandon his plans and seek shelter from the storm.

When night finally fell over the town, the doors and windows had been buried well below the drifts.

Sitting beside a roaring fire Jenna watched Grandma preparing stew for supper. The elderly woman would have bustled about, but the lack of space kept movement to a minimum. Counting the children there were six people in a space more designed for two or three, though Megan and Justin were being quite still at the moment.

Mia had suggested sleeping over with the eldest residents of Imil, not only to conserve fuel, but to keep an eye on the elderly couple. Needless to say, they were welcomed with open arms and "Grandma" (as she insisted that Jenna refer to her) had quietly taken the visitor aside to explain that, "Although they run around helping other people, they don't take too great care for themselves. Can't have them young ones starving because they're too tired to fix something up for themselves."

The arrangement seemed to be satisfactory to the last members of the Mercury clan, so Jenna nodded and grinned along with the old woman. Whatever else one could say, at least they ate well in the village. _'Very well indeed'_; as the aroma from the large kettle reached her Jenna shivered a little and burrowed a little deeper into nest of blankets that she sat on. Beside her, Megan stifled a wiggle.

"Mia." The little girl's voice sounded from her burrow. The cleric turned her gentle gaze to her charge.

"Yes Megan?"

"I'm cold." This came out as a plaintive whimper, calculated to break even the hardest of hearts. Mia's eyes had tears in them as she whispered her reply. "I know little one."

Jenna opened her arms to the younger girl and pulled her onto her lap. "Come on Megan, it'll be alright. You can sit here with me, okay?"

The child snuggled in to the embrace, leaving Mia to look gratefully at her friend as she helped Grandma to scoop out the stew into thick porcelain bowls. Grandpa hobbled over from the window, leaning lightly on his staff. "Well. Hmm. Yes."

Mia turned to regard him with her gentle gaze. "What is it?"

The old man looked up from his mumblings. An immense grin split his face as he nearly leapt into his place. "It's time to eat!"

The cleric blinked and nodded. "Yes it is. What does that have to do with what you were mumbling about?"

The old man looked over at her with a twinkle in his eye. "It doesn't have anything at all to do with what I was saying before. I was just thinking to myself aloud is all, and then it was time to eat."

Grandma passed the confused girl and patted her shoulder consolingly. "Don't worry dear, Grandpa just loves to tease you all."

"I see."

Jenna smiled. It looked like her friend was still slightly confused, but she wasn't going to admit it to anyone. Mia always managed to take things so well. It was amazing how she kept so calm in so many of the situations where Jenna had lost her temper or composure.

'_If we didn't both like Isaac so much, this would be the ideal friendship.'_

Of course, the snow kept falling outside, and on the inside the little group ate beef stew and speculated on what had caused the disaster. This scene was repeated in every house in Imil, and as of yet, no answers were forthcoming…

---

"I see then that thou hast recovered thine revered place of rest. Hast thou any news for us, or riddles to solve that hint at the solution to the problem?" Frog's voice remained dry as he addressed the Guru of Time. His hand rested lightly upon the hilt of the Masamune, the sword riding quietly in its sheath. _'Perhaps the twins be listening to hear tell word of their "Father".'_ A grim smile came to the amphibian's face.

Gaspar stood still as a statue under the lamp post; only his beard quivered a little as he spoke. "It is our conclusion that our world has been moved out of its place and is being joined with another."

_There was silence in heaven for about an hour…_

Magus blinked.

"How…?" He began his sentence, but trailed off as he pondered how to finish it.

"It's impossible!"

Lucca was gaping like a fish, her mind not comprehending the magnitude of the power that could do such a thing. Her scientific brain was saying that this could not be, yet if the gurus said that it had occurred…

Frog merely nodded, as though this happened everyday. "What then? Is it possible to undo that which hath been done? Praytell, what are we to do?"

Gaspar shrugged, his hands resting firmly on his cane. "Not even the wise can see all ends; or beginnings for that matter. Melchior thinks that things will be permanent, and I cannot tell you what I see of the matter."

The last member of the party spoke up, Marle having remained silent for as long as she could endure doing so. "Excuse me Gaspar, can you tell me where Chrono is?"

The elderly man blinked twice and looked over at the princess. "Ah, right. Oh, your Chrono is doing fine, although he swallowed rather more of the sea than was healthy for him. He's found a friend to take care of him while he tries to find his way back to you again."

Marle's face glowed at the news_. "He's_ _alive!"_

"Of course he is." Magus' words were blunt. The Zealian prince frowned at the girls, wondering how they could have failed to see. "He is after all a Chrono Trigger. _Pure potential_. How does one kill that?"

Spekkio chose that time to resume his dancing and bouncing around. Only, this time he had a much greater area to work with…

---

"NOOOOOO!!!"

'_It can't be!'_ Garet fell to his knees in the sand. _'All of the sailors, all the passengers. Felix. All of them gone?!'_

"No. Some of them had to of survived."

The fire adept straightened his shoulders and climbed to his feet. "They have to be out there somewhere, and I'm going to find them. Slinging the sheath to his sword over his shoulder, he started resolutely up the beach, never heeding the sand that stuck to his clothes and made travel awkward.

At each step the ocean pounded against the shore, bringing more pieces of wreckage to the beach. Stubbornly he pushed on, refusing to give in to the overwhelming sense of despair that haunted his steps. Finally he had to stop and rest.

Dropping down to the sand, he slumped forward and braced his head with his hands. _'Jenna! What will she think when she hears that her brother probably drowned? How can I ever take news like that home?'_

The light tap on his shoulder shocked him to no end. Startled, Garet looked wildly around him before his gaze settled on the young man who had tried to get his attention. "Ivan! The ship! There was a huge wave and then we went under and I can't find Felix and...!"

Ivan laughed softly, his blonde hair blowing in the sea air. "Don't worry about Felix, he got to shore and started helping the other survivors. He was worried when you didn't show up, so when Sheba and I got here, he asked me to come find you. You just went the wrong direction on the beach is all."

Garet blinked wearily. "You mean I just had to turn around? Argh!"

Ivan patted his shoulder consolingly. "Don't worry, it could have happened to anyone. Let's get you back, shall we?"

With a surprising display of strength, he hauled the taller boy to his feet and supported him as they made their way slowly back towards the other shipwreck survivors. After what seemed to be an interminable length of time, they came in sight of the crude camp that was taking shape. Driftwood burned in two large fires, around which were gathered a great portion of the sailors. Felix rushed over as soon as he caught sight of the pair.

"Garet!" The venus adept looked quite upset, though relief seemed to pour through his expression as he drew nearer. "Gods! How could you do that to me? I thought I was going to have to return home and tell the folks there that you drowned when I dragged you along with me on a trip!"

Garet nodded, still weary beyond words. "Same here."

Felix started to speak again, but was interrupted by someone poking him in the arm. He turned to see Sheba shaking her head at him. "Later Felix. You should help Ivan get him over to the fire. He's still not dried out totally, and he looks too tired do anything right now."

Felix winced. "Right. I'm sorry Garet."

Gingerly he grabbed an arm and helped drag the boy over to the fire. As the flames crackled and hissed from the damp wood, Garet finally began to feel more like himself again. He fell asleep.

Overhead the stars began to twinkle in the gathering darkness. Felix looked around the group huddling around the fire. It was good to see so many faces, he mused, '_Especially after such a great wave._' Beside him, Sheba cuddled closer, happy to be with him again.

Ivan's eyes were laughing at him, though the boy never said a word. Felix curled an arm around Sheba and adjusted the blanket to cover them both. Looking back at Ivan, he shook his head. Things had changed then, since he had last seen them. Ivan wasn't nearly as timid as he had been before. _'That's good...'_ he thought, stiffling a yawn.

Sleep didn't take long to claim him. His eyes closed and his thoughts faded away, even as the darkness made the stars' light become more pronounced.


End file.
